Words from the Pros – Stanislas Lucien, CEO of Travel-Insight
Since 2016, Travel-Insight has established itself as a leading agency in communication, influence, and tourism marketing.
Its co-founder, Stanislas Lucien, reflects here on ten years of evolution in influencer marketing, the importance of authentic storytelling, new drivers of performance, and the role of agencies in 2030.
Summary
Influencer marketing: from buzz to truth
InfosTourisme.com: Since the creation of Travel-Insight in 2016, how have you seen the role of influencer marketing evolve in tourism?
Stanislas Lucien: I have the perspective of ten years to see how influencer marketing has gone from an experimental phase to an essential pillar of brand strategies, and not just in the tourism sector. In 2016, working with travel bloggers or Instagrammers was still a novelty. Since then, the industry has massively integrated influencers into its communication plans; 73% of brands now actively use them, proof that the trend is here to stay.
Above all, the way to engage them has matured. We've moved from solely focusing on stars with millions of followers to a more nuanced approach that leverages micro-influencers and authentic niches. Travelers, saturated with overly polished content, are turning to smaller influencers perceived as closer to their reality.
Their audience, while smaller, is often far more engaged and trusting, which amplifies the effectiveness of the messages disseminated—ideal for promoting local or unique experiences. In short, the tourism industry has seen influence shift from hype to a quest for authenticity: from dreamlike visuals to genuine storytelling, sincere emotion, and a bond of trust between a creator and their community.
A return to value and trust
InfosTourisme.com: There's a lot of talk about a return to value and trust in brand communication. How is this reflected in your recent campaigns?
Stanislas Lucien: It's clear that after a few years of advertising inflation, we're seeing a return to the fundamentals: meaning, authenticity, and trust. In our latest campaigns at Travel-Insight, this translates into several choices. First, we work with real, relatable stories. For example, for the Vendée region, we focused early on collaborating with content creators who truly shared our regional values. The results spoke for themselves: according to the director of Vendée Tourisme, these campaigns, conducted since 2018, have been "very positive both on a human and quantitative level, thanks to high and immediate audience reach." This translated into millions of views and phenomenal social media engagement. This kind of feedback proves that by focusing on sincere narratives—in this case, two young influencers embarking on an adventure in the Vendée—we build trust with the public while achieving results.
Next, we prioritize consistency between words and actions. We're talking about values? Then we need to demonstrate them concretely.
So, when the Dominican Republic was hit by the media frenzy of Hurricane Irma in 2017, we organized the immediate departure of several travel creators to the country to show the reality on the ground and reassure future visitors. The Tourism Board wanted to reach a new clientele "more attracted to authenticity, discovery, and encounters," and that's exactly the kind of genuine content our influencers produced. Similarly, in all our recent campaigns, we've integrated sustainable development, local focus, and ethical considerations because travelers, and we along with them, aspire to meaningful tourism. The core idea is simple: to earn trust, you have to provide value (cultural, human, and informative) and be true to your commitments. Every time a brand speaks out, it must be an opportunity to prove its claims through useful content, a shared emotion, or a concrete action.
Performance levers for 2026
InfosTourisme.com: In 2026, what do you think are the new performance drivers for an effective content strategy in tourism?
Stanislas Lucien: In 2026, the effectiveness of a content strategy will no longer depend solely on advertising budgets, but primarily on a few key levers being effectively activated. The first is undoubtedly participatory authenticity through traveler communities. We know that 79% of people say that user-generated content (UGC) has a decisive impact on their travel choices. In other words, a spontaneous testimonial, a "real" story from a weekend explorer, will often have more reach than a polished campaign. Destinations have understood this by increasingly soliciting their visitors themselves to share their experiences.
The second lever is short, creative video, the king of today's social media. Consumers spend an average of more than five hours a week watching videos on their mobile devices—an enormous amount of attention span. For tourism professionals, this means flooding TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts with inspiring micro-content. And you don't need Hollywood budgets: authentic, candid formats work best when they show a destination unvarnished, as it truly is. This spontaneity fosters trust and allows potential travelers to imagine themselves there.
The third performance driver is the intelligent use of data and new technologies. By 2026, we will have increasingly sophisticated analytics and AI tools to personalize content and refine its distribution. This will allow us to stop bombarding everyone with the same message and instead reach the right person, at the right time, on the right channel. For example, we can now precisely identify which type of traveler follows a particular micro-influencer and adapt the message accordingly. We can also measure reactions to a campaign in real time and adjust it on the fly. We are therefore in an era where creativity and algorithms combine: impactful storytelling, supported by well-utilized data, will work wonders. Brands capable of providing genuine, immersive, and useful content experiences will clearly stand out in a world where internet users' attention spans are fleeting.
Finally, another often underestimated lever in content creation is co-creation and interactivity. Travelers are no longer passive spectators: they can be involved through surveys, challenges, and participatory content. By encouraging their contributions, their engagement increases and their feedback enriches the campaign. In short, to succeed in 2026, a content strategy will need to be community-driven, video-centric, data-driven, and interactive, while maintaining a genuine voice.
Combining creativity and performance
InfosTourisme.com: How to reconcile creativity, storytelling and ROI imperatives today?
Stanislas Lucien: It's a real challenge today: how to continue being creative and telling great stories when budgets are shrinking and ROI (return on investment) is under intense scrutiny? I'm convinced that far from being contradictory, these concepts can actually reinforce each other. First, we have to accept that creativity isn't just about resources; it's primarily about ideas. A clever concept, a moving story, will sometimes cost far less than a massive media buy, while making a much bigger impact. We see this with the success of "DIY" formats on TikTok or Instagram: with minimal expense but a lot of imagination, you get engagement.
Next, creativity means efficiency. Well-crafted storytelling will naturally guide the audience toward action, without the need for aggressive sales tactics. To reconcile the two, we focus on a strategic and measured approach to creativity. This involves clear planning: what emotions do we want to evoke, and what conversions do we expect at the end of the process? We define concrete indicators beforehand (clicks to a website, quote requests, etc.) and design the content with these objectives in mind. This doesn't preclude being poetic or playful in form, but we maintain a results-oriented narrative. For example, we can tell the story of a traveler (creativity) while subtly inserting a call to action leading to an offer (ROI).
Furthermore, I strongly believe in the philosophy of "targeting." It's pointless to speak to everyone; you need to speak to the right people. "The goal is no longer just to reach a massive audience, but to reach the right people," as we wrote in a recent article. By targeting more effectively, you spend less and maximize impact—a win-win situation. Social media offers fantastic tools for this, allowing you to precisely retarget audiences interested in specific content. Optimizing ROI is often more about relevance than volume.
Finally, a word on the method: to combine storytelling and business imperatives, an agile approach is essential. Test short pieces of creative content, measure their performance, learn from the feedback, and continuously adjust. This creative-data loop ensures originality isn't sacrificed while maintaining a focus on constant improvement. Listen to your audience and adapt. "Adopting a creative and engaged stance means... listening to your audiences and offering them value-added content at the right time and on the right channels"—it couldn't be said better! In short, creativity must serve a clear vision of objectives, and ROI must incorporate an element of betting on innovation. This is how you can have your cake and eat it too: original campaigns that tell a story and deliver results.
Destinations vs. private brands: two worlds, two timeframes according to Stanislas Lucien
InfosTourisme.com: The agency works with both destinations and private brands. Do you observe any differences in their expectations?
Stanislas Lucien: Travel-Insight is fortunate to work with both destinations (tourist offices, countries, regions, etc.) and private brands (hotel chains, tour operators, airlines, etc.). These two types of clients sometimes have very different expectations, which is what makes our job so rewarding, as we must constantly adapt.
For a destination, the central challenge is often brand awareness and overall image. It's about "telling a unique story in an authentic and inspiring way, inviting visitors to discover a singular experience." In short, we develop a territorial brand, highlighting its cultural, natural, and human assets with a fairly holistic vision. Destination campaigns aim to evoke dreams, to create an emotional connection to a place, even if the return on investment is indirect (e.g., increasing travel intent rather than selling a specific product). We work extensively with local stakeholders—accommodation providers, guides, and communities—because a destination is an ecosystem. Destinations often expect a long-term vision from us, consistent with their sustainable tourism development strategy and their identity. For example, with a wine region, we would build a narrative around the art of living and tradition, rather than seeking immediate conversion.
For a private tourism brand, the objectives are generally shorter-term and more concrete: selling hotel nights, airline tickets, and tours. The approach will therefore be more focused on direct sales performance. We will work on the brand's competitive positioning (its USP, unique selling proposition), its differentiation from competitors, and activate highly targeted levers to generate business. For example, for a hotel group, we will design media campaigns highlighting its special offers and services, and produce engaging branded content that tells the unique story of the establishment while encouraging bookings. Private brands often expect the agency to strengthen their brand presence and sales. Consequently, our methods include more ROI-driven tactics (sponsored campaigns, retargeting, SEO/SEA optimization, etc.), whereas for a destination, we will focus more on organic growth and image-building events.
In short, destination rhymes with dream, image, and long term, while private brand rhymes with product, conversion, and short term. Of course, the lines are blurring; a destination also wants results, and a brand also needs an image. But we adapt our role: editorial strategist and inspiration on the one hand, pragmatic and sales-oriented marketer on the other. This dual role has been our strength since 2016, when we connected travelers and tourism professionals by promoting destinations as well as brands, travel agencies, and events.
The success of the Influencers' Village by Travel-Insight at IFTM Top Resa
InfosTourisme.com: The Influencers' Village at IFTM Top Resa has become an unmissable event. What has made it so successful?
Stanislas Lucien: The Influencer Village at IFTM Top Resa is a project I'm particularly proud of. Launched in 2018 in partnership with IFTM (the largest B2B tourism event in France), it was an immediate and resounding success, becoming an annual highlight of the show. In my opinion, several factors contributed to this success. First, the innovative concept. We conceived the first "reverse workshop" in the French tourism sector: instead of brands parading in front of influencers hoping for a collaboration, we arranged for influencers to meet with brands by appointment. This role reversal piqued everyone's interest. For influencers, it was empowering to have their village at the heart of the show, and for brands, it was the perfect opportunity to easily meet a multitude of content creators over three days. In a way, we built a bridge between two worlds that were looking to work together more effectively.
Next, I would say that the success lies in the very tangible value provided to participants. For each event, we select 30 to 40 influencers from various niches (family, luxury, adventure, culture, etc.), and we facilitate hundreds of qualified connections. In recent years, we've had up to 440 scheduled meetings over three days at the Village, representing just as many contacts established between a destination or brand and a creator. This is extremely effective compared to each person approaching others individually. The Village has professionalized the influencer-tourism relationship, making it both more personal (we meet in person at a dedicated booth, in a friendly atmosphere) and more structured (with a schedule and objectives).
Finally, the human element played a crucial role. We run this Village with passion, striving each year to add new features (workshops, flash talks, awards ceremonies, etc.). This dynamic fosters a community of travel influencers who eagerly anticipate the event to connect, network with professionals, and develop projects. Positive word-of-mouth has snowballed, to the point that today, the Influencers' Village is a must-attend event for anyone wanting to stay on top of social media trends in tourism. In short, its success stems from a good idea at the right time, meticulous execution, and the collective enthusiasm it generates within the industry.
The Pioneers Forum and Pangaea Network: two international breaths of fresh air
InfosTourisme.com: You are also involved in the Pioneers Forum and the Pangaea Network. How do these initiatives inform your vision?
Stanislas Lucien: Alongside my work at the agency, I am indeed involved in initiatives such as the Pioneers Forum and the Pangaea network. These commitments are invaluable because they broaden my perspective and enrich my vision of tourism marketing on an international scale.
The Pioneers Forum, first of all, is a unique event that has existed since 2000 and which we now co-organize with ESCAET. Every year, around 130 tourism decision-makers (directors, presidents, etc.) travel together for a few days to discover a destination, attend high-level conferences, and exchange ideas with their peers. It's a study trip, a think tank, and an intensive networking opportunity all in an informal setting. I actively participate and always come back brimming with inspiration. We discuss current and future trends, unfiltered, with experts from all backgrounds. For example, at the 2025 Forum, we discussed generative AI, regenerative tourism, new forms of intermediation, and more. These on-site discussions help me gain perspective on our day-to-day agency work. It's also an opportunity to test my intuitions with other pioneers in the sector and compare our methods. In short, the Pioneers Forum gives me a head start each year, a glimpse into what's on the horizon for tourism. And on a personal level, sharing several days with other enthusiasts creates strong bonds; it's a network of friends more than a professional network, one that constantly challenges and inspires me.
The Pangaea Network, for its part, is an international network of tourism communication agencies. Travel-Insight represents France in this collective, which brings together partners from all over the world (Europe, the Americas, Asia, etc.). Here again, the idea is to share knowledge and resources to better serve our clients globally. In very concrete terms, thanks to Pangaea, I can exchange information in real time with colleagues in New York, Rome, or Sydney about developments in their respective markets. We compare the behavior of Chinese and American travelers, we share inspiring campaigns that have been successful elsewhere… This broadens my cultural and marketing horizons. Our mission at Travel-Insight is to "forge a new link between travelers (who are increasingly active on social networks) and tourism professionals, by equipping the latter with cutting-edge communication tools to stay ahead of the curve." And the Pangaea Network contributes precisely to this, keeping us at the forefront of global trends and allowing us to deploy truly international strategies. For example, for a multi-country #ExploreFrance campaign, we were able to collaborate with other agencies in the network, ensuring message consistency while adapting it locally. This is an enormous source of enrichment for me: I'm not confined to a purely French perspective on tourism; I grasp the expectations of a Brazilian traveler as well as the innovations of a Finnish startup. In short, Forum des Pionniers and Pangaea Network are two major international events in my schedule; they keep me from stagnating and fuel my creativity as well as my overall understanding of the sector.
A piece of advice for 2026: "Be real"
InfosTourisme.com: If you had to give just one piece of advice to a brand or destination that wants to strengthen its digital visibility in 2026?
Stanislas Lucien: If I had to give just one piece of advice, I would say: be authentic and committed, show who you really are. Today, travelers no longer just buy a product or a destination; they connect with what you represent. "In 2025, brand loyalty will no longer be based solely on its products, but on what it represents," and this will be even more true in 2026. So, highlight your values, bring them to life digitally in a sincere way. Whether it's inclusion, sustainability, or local roots: identify what matters to you and make it the central theme of your content.
But be warned, it's not enough to simply proclaim commitments in a nice LinkedIn post: every statement, every video, every reply to a comment must exude authenticity. Audiences are very attentive to the consistency between words and actions. "These commitments must be visible, sincere, and integrated into daily communication... It's this consistency... that creates a relationship of trust and strengthens long-term loyalty." In short: don't cheat, don't oversell, embody your messages. If you're passionate about what you offer, convey that passion online. Use storytelling to draw your audience into your world, so they can identify with your values. This capital of trust and community that you will build is your greatest asset for 2026. Algorithms change, trends come and go, but a brand or destination that has created a genuine connection with its audience will continue to shine. So my advice: "be real," dare to be creatively sincere. It's risky to think outside the box, certainly, but in 2026, not having a personality is even riskier.
B2B media and data: towards a new generation of professional tools
InfosTourisme.com: At InfosTourisme.com, we are launching practical and data-driven tools to support professionals. How do you perceive this evolution?
Stanislas Lucien: I'm absolutely thrilled to see professional tourism media outlets, like InfosTourisme.com, evolving towards more "tool-based" formats, with interactive reports, benchmarks, and data-driven practical guides. In my view, this is a very healthy and even necessary development. Today, industry professionals don't just need news; they need decision-making support. The flow of information is constant, but what's often lacking is the ability to structure it, compare it, and translate it into action plans. B2B media that "don't just inform, but help with decision-making, comparison, and action planning" are exactly what we need.
In practical terms, having, for example, an interactive report on travel trends for 2026 with dynamic graphs, maps, and perhaps even an integrated chatbot, represents a huge time saving for us professionals. Rather than searching for scattered data ourselves, we have a centralized platform that serves as a monitoring tool, an analysis tool, and a practical guide. This helps raise the skill level of the entire ecosystem, as everyone has easier access to market benchmarks, best practices, and so on. I also like the idea of being able to test and project using these new media: for example, an interactive "industry" page that would allow me to compare the digital performance of different destinations is invaluable for refining my own client recommendations.
In short, I see these data-driven media outlets as true partners in our daily lives. They're becoming a hybrid of media, research firms, and collaborative platforms. And for an agency like ours, it's an opportunity to become more pragmatic: we can base our recommendations on objective data provided by these tools, and we can detect weak market signals more quickly. It's a win-win situation. So I welcome this evolution: a professional media outlet that offers dashboards and comparisons is a catalyst for informed decisions in a sector where, let's be honest, we've sometimes lacked a data-driven culture. At a time when we're talking a lot about big data, AI, and so on, seeing the trade press embrace this trend and put it at the service of the tourism community is very encouraging.
The campaign that left its mark on him: Post-Irma Dominican Republic
InfosTourisme.com: On a personal level, which campaign has made the biggest impression on you?
Stanislas Lucien: Several projects have deeply affected me recently, but if I have to choose just one, I immediately think back to our collaboration with the Dominican Republic Tourism Office after 2017. It was a pivotal moment: Hurricane Irma had just struck people's minds (even though, fortunately, the country had been relatively spared physically).
The perception was disastrous, and we had to act quickly to reassure travelers and show that the destination remained welcoming. We then launched an unprecedented influence campaign in record time: sending three iconic travel content creators (Bruno Maltor, Alex Vizeo, and Travel Me Happy) to the Dominican Republic. Their mission: to travel across the country one at a time and share their unfiltered experiences with their communities. In three months, they crisscrossed the island, exploring beaches, jungles, colonial cities, and mountains, and published dozens of videos, posts, and articles showcasing an authentic, diverse, and safe Dominican Republic. The results exceeded our expectations: over 2 million people reached online, incredibly rich content for the tourism board, and above all, a huge boost in public goodwill among the French public.
But the most memorable moment was the “Traveler’s Glass” event we organized in Paris upon Bruno Maltor’s return. The idea was to extend the virtual experience with a real-life meeting between the influencer and his community. We booked a venue decorated in the colors of the Dominican Republic, invited his followers… and over 1,000 people showed up to share this convivial moment and exchange about travel! I remember the packed room, the incredible enthusiasm when Bruno recounted his Dominican discoveries, as if everyone had traveled with him.
We even organized a contest on-site, with our partners (an airline and a tour operator), to give one lucky person the chance to win the same trip as Bruno. The atmosphere was electric. As a communications professional, seeing this bridge between the digital world and real life materialize like this was incredibly moving. We had managed to transcend a simple PR campaign to create a genuine, close-knit community around a destination. This project left a lasting impression on me because it proved the power of well-orchestrated influencer marketing: we not only restored a country's image after a crisis, but we also created human connections, trust, and lasting memories for travelers.
It is precisely to experience moments like this that I do this job, this feeling of having brought people and a place a little closer together on the world map.
Horizon 2030: Agencies as strategic co-pilots
InfosTourisme.com: Finally, how do you envision the role of agencies like Travel-Insight in 2030?
Stanislas Lucien:
By 2030, I see tourism marketing agencies as more hybrid and indispensable players than ever before. Their roles will expand even further. Ten years ago, a communications agency primarily produced attractive creative campaigns. Today, it provides strategic consulting, data marketing, influencer marketing, event planning, technology monitoring… And tomorrow, this will be amplified. By 2030, an agency like Travel-Insight will be a creator, a catalyst, and a strategic partner—all three at once, without having to choose!
First and foremost, creativity is essential because the need to "think outside the box" will remain. In an ultra-digital world, where virtual/augmented reality will likely become commonplace, and travelers are constantly seeking novelty, creative minds will be needed to invent new ways of telling the story of a place or an experience. Whether through immersive content in the metaverse, global participatory campaigns, or formats yet to be imagined, the agency will need to continuously inject creativity to amaze and engage audiences.
Secondly, the agency will be a catalyst because it will be at the heart of an ecosystem of expertise. Even today, we're bringing together coders, videographers, community managers, SEO experts, tourism sociologists, and more. This trend will only intensify. The agency of 2030 will be the one that knows how to gather the right partners around the table, including the client themselves, the local residents of a destination, and so on, to co-create innovative solutions. I see us a bit like conductors: we don't play every instrument, but we know when to bring in the violins or the percussion to make the music resonate. Catalyzing also means experimenting collectively: the agency will be a lab where we test new marketing ideas with startups, influencers, data scientists, and others. It's by being this crucible of innovation that we can steer tourism in the right direction (for example, towards greater sustainability, inclusion, and so forth).
Finally, and most importantly, a strategic partner. I believe that by 2030, a travel agency will no longer be seen as simply a service provider executing communication orders, but rather as a comprehensive advisor, part of the client's extended team. Tourism issues are becoming increasingly complex (considering local development, ecological transition, customer experience, economic profitability, etc.), so decision-makers will need solid support to navigate all of this. The agency, with its cross-functional perspective (covering marketing, digital, fieldwork, and consumer trends), will be the partner capable of connecting the dots. For example, we can support a destination from the strategic planning phase (what positioning for the next 5-10 years?), then through multi-channel execution, and finally through impact analysis—a 360° role, in short. In fact, we're already moving in this direction: at Travel-Insight, we've launched a Press & Trade Relations division to complement our offering and cover the entire spectrum of tourism communication, demonstrating that clients expect a holistic approach from us.
So, creator, catalyst, or strategist? All three, Captain! To be a bit more figurative: I see us as a long-term travel partner for brands and destinations. A partner who sometimes takes the wheel to show the way (strategic vision), sometimes designs the stops and the itinerary (campaign creativity), and often brings other talented passengers on board (tech partners, media, influencers) to make the journey even richer. But always with the same goal: to guide the destination (or the brand) safely to port, that is, towards success and sustainability, while remaining true to its values. If agencies maintain this direction, then in 2030 and beyond, they will be more essential than ever in the tourism landscape, creative strategic partners and catalysts (let's be bold with the words!) for all the great adventures in the sector.
